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Their plan was simple: make a profit from selling Christmas cookies. They learned a lot from dealing with the unexpected.
By DONNA WINCHESTER, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times, published December 18, 2002
ST. PETERSBURG -- Ray-Charles Dacres gazed at tropical foliage draped in thousands of tiny white lights Saturday night and ran through the numbers one more time.
He and his classmate Antonio Adames had to sell 50 cookies in two hours at a dollar apiece to make their goal for the night. He figured it was the equivalent of 25 cookies an hour, or about two cookies every five minutes.
The 13-year-old shivered inside his lightweight jacket and wondered if it was too early in the evening to lower the price to 50 cents. The cookies would probably move faster, he reasoned, but they would have to sell twice as many.
He turned to consult with Antonio just as a woman approached their 6-foot table under a canopy of twinkling lights and asked for two cookies.
"That will be $2, ma'am," Ray-Charles said as he carefully wrapped the sugary confections in a napkin and handed them to her. "Thank you, and have a Merry Christmas."
He deposited the money in a metal box and grinned at Antonio. They were $2 closer to their goal, and apparently not yet at the point they had reached the previous night when less-than-anticipated crowds at the Sunken Gardens Victorian Holiday Garden Stroll had forced them to reduce the prices at their Christmas cookie concession.
It was the second weekend that Ray-Charles, Antonio and the other members of their class at Academy Prep Center for Education had been practicing what principal Jesse Williams calls "the language of business." By Sunday night, the eighth-graders had experienced much of the theory they have discussed since August in their Future Business Leaders of America club.
To prepare for their Christmas cookie venture, the students did what all business owners do: They created a business plan. Under the direction of advisers Connie Kone and Scott Pavlica, they figured out how many cookies they would need, how much the cookies would cost and how much they needed to charge in order to make a profit.
"Their first thought was to charge 75 cents per cookie so the price wouldn't be a burden to the families," Mrs. Kone said. "But then they found out another vendor at the stroll was selling cookies for $2, so they settled on a dollar."
The plan sounded good on paper. At least 1,000 visitors were expected at the stroll each night. The students figured they had to attract only a small percentage to meet their $300 goal. What they hadn't hadn't counted on, Mrs. Kone said, were chilly temperatures that reduced their consumer pool.
Competition from two other vendors was another challenge. Both had electrical outlets at their concession stands, which meant they could sell coffee and hot chocolate, while the Academy Prep students could sell only sodas and bottled water.
"They were selling hot stuff and we were selling cold stuff," Antonio said. "It was really stressful. We weren't getting a lot of customers. But we had lower prices."
They also had a good location. After visiting the site ahead of time, they chose a spot adjacent to the entertainment area, thinking visibility would boost their sales.
But on the second night of the stroll, the performers didn't show up. The students decided to mingle to compensate for the reduced traffic. They quickly learned that approaching people -- especially children -- and asking, "Would you like some Christmas cookies?" implied that the cookies were free. The experiment compromised their profit margin, but helped them refine their marketing approach.
"I think the hardest thing has been to get them to interact with the public," Mrs. Kone said. "It's hard for them to smile and say hello and ask, 'Can we interest you in some Christmas cookies?' They're shy."
Back in their classroom last week, they discussed what went wrong and what went right the first weekend. They talked about the things they could change and the things they would have to work around in the second half of their venture.
By Saturday night, they had learned to speak loudly enough to be heard above the Grace Lutheran Hand Bell Choir. They had realized that children who asked if they knew in which direction Santa had gone might also want to buy a cookie. They were less discouraged when people asked where they could buy hot chocolate.
But they still struggled a little with rejection. Sensing their frustration, Pavlica, who along with Mrs. Kone had worked beside them each night, called them into a huddle and gave them a pep talk just as the wind picked up.
Recommitted, the boys returned to their places to find a tall man with a young child on his shoulders approaching.
"These are the future business leaders of America," Mrs. Kone piped up. Ray-Charles asked him if he would be interested in buying a cookie.
"I don't want any cookies, but I'll give you a dollar," the man said as he reached for his wallet. "I guess I'll be reading about you in the business pages some day."
Williams, the principal, has no doubt that the students will grow up to be successful business people. Committed to the idea that youngsters need to find ways to express themselves outside the classroom, he was eager for Academy Prep to become the first middle school in the area with a Future Business Leaders of America chapter.
"I didn't want business to be an esoteric language for them," he said. "It starts here, at this age. They are learning the language. They are becoming comfortable."
Pavlica, who also teaches social studies at the school, is hoping this will be the first of several hands-on opportunities for the students. They missed their $300 goal by a few dollars, but they will have enough money to finance their local, state and national FBLA dues for the year.
More important, Pavlica said, they learned some valuable lessons about business and about life.
"I don't feel it's necessarily bad if things don't go as planned," he said. "They can learn just as much as they would have if things had gone perfectly. Besides, how often does that happen in real life?"
Academy Prep Center for Learning was established in 1997 by a small group of retired educators and business people who wanted to help youngsters from families of modest means succeed. Based on the Nativity Mission School in New York City, the private tuition-free academy is financed through individual, group and corporate donations.
Academy Prep opened with two fifth- and sixth-grade classes. Seventh and eighth grades were added in 1998 and 1999, and the first class of girls was added in 2000. This year, 46 boys and 32 girls attend the school at 2301 22nd Ave. S, St. Petersburg.
Although the students are predominantly African-American and live in the neighborhood surrounding the school, any middle school student who qualifies for the federal free or reduced-price lunch program and has the ability and desire to succeed is welcome to apply.
Administrators make a 12-year commitment to the students. After graduation from Academy Prep, the school assists in placing them in public or private high schools. Graduates wishing to attend college will receive assistance with the application process and with scholarships.
In exchange, students follow a rigorous, year-round academic program from 7:45 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. They participate in intramural sports, cultural activities and volunteer projects between 3:30 and 5 p.m. Students with less than a B average attend mandatory study hall from 5 until 6:30 p.m. They are encouraged to attend structured activities and events on Saturdays.
In a neighborhood where fewer than 28 percent of young people graduate from high school, 96 percent of Academy Prep graduates are still enrolled.
For information, contact Jesse Williams, principal, at 322-0800, ext. 2122 or visit the school's Web site at www.academyprep.org.